These products offer great value, with a good score across both features and price.
7+
Great
These are competitive products, though they didn't quite get top scores.
5+
Standard
These products might offer less value or command a higher premium than others in the market.
0+
Basic
These products might only offer a basic set of features or aren't very competitive on price.
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1 - 10 of 106
Finder Score - Home and Contents Insurance
Each month, we get crunching on most every home insurance product in Australia to see how they stack up. We rank over 50 products on 16 different features, including price. We end up with a single score out of 10 that helps you compare home insurance a bit faster.
Your home is likely to be the most expensive thing you own. If it gets damaged by a falling tree, burst pipes or a storm, you'll be patting yourself on the back for organising home insurance. Here's a quick breakdown of what you get:
The ability to rebuild. If an unexpected disaster strikes, you'll be able to repair or rebuild from scratch.
Protection of your possessions. Whether it's family heirlooms, your cosy sofa or even your Xbox, the contents of your home aren't just stuff. With contents insurance, you can repair or replace your possessions if they're damaged by fire, storm, theft or other insured events.
To meet your obligations. If you take out a mortgage to buy a home, it's a condition of your loan contract to take out home insurance – the lender wants to be sure your property is protected if something happens.
Peace of mind. With the right policy in place, you can rest assured you'll have the financial support you need if something major happens to your home or its contents.
The types of home insurance you can compare
Home and contents insurance
This is combined insurance that covers your house and your possessions within it (most of the options in the table above are home and contents policies). It'll cover the cost of repairing or rebuilding your home if it's damaged from an insurable event, like a storm. I it also covers your possessions – furniture, electronics, carpets, curtains and clothing – from loss, damage and theft. You can also pay for extra cover for items you take outside of the house (like electronics or jewellery).
Contents insurance covers just your possessions in the home. This includes jewellery, electronics, carpets, curtains, furniture, appliances and furnishings. This is a great option for renters or those homeowners who live in an apartment.
This is stand-alone cover for only your home. It also covers other fixtures on your property, such as garages, fences, and sheds. It protects you against a bunch of natural events, such as fire, storm damage and (depending on the policy) floods.
Landlord insurance protects your home against theft, malicious damage, loss of rent, as well as natural events like storms, flood and fire. It's a smart idea if you're renting your home out to strangers.
When you live in a group living setting, like a block of apartments, you need cover for the building and common property like lifts, pools, car parks, gardens, balconies, driveways and even walls.
What does home insurance cover?
Fires
For example, a fire or bushfire destroys your home. Only some policies cover accidental fires.
Storms
For example, if wind from a storm damages your roof.
Theft
For example, replacing locks and stolen items after a break-in.
Impact
For example, if a tree falls and damages part of your home.
Leaks
For example, if a pipe bursts and ruins your floors.
"Given Australia's increasing frequency of natural disasters, it's crucial to understand how home insurance can support you. Temporary accommodation is vital for families displaced by events like bushfires and floods. Portable homes, often covered under home insurance policies, provide a secure and immediate solution, ensuring that families have a safe place to stay while their permanent homes are being restored."
Step 1: Evaluate how much your home and possessions are worth. When you take out home insurance, you give a dollar value to your insurer for how much your home is worth. The cost of home insurance for you will depend on this figure. Insure your house for too little and you risk being underinsured and out of pocket come claim time. Overinsure your house and you'll pay higher premiums.
Step 2: Determine what kind of cover you need. Do you want to cover your home and everything in it? Then opt for home & contents insurance. Only want to cover your contents? Just your building? Figure out what kind of things you want to cover and find the policy that fits those needs. For example, a policy that offers total replacement cover might cost more but will also ensure you won't be underinsured. You'll also pay more if you want to get covered for accidental damage, but if you've got toddlers running around this is a no-brainer and could save you more cash in the long run.
Step 3: Compare insurers. Once you've figured out how much your home and contents is worth and you know what policy you're after, start comparing insurers. Be sure to look at what the policy features as well as price.
Meet our experts
Collectively, our experts have over 12 years of experience helping people find home insurance.
We've written hundreds of guides (211 so far and counting) and are passionate about presenting the most up-to-date and relevant information for you.
We can help provide answers during major weather events and natural disasters such as La Niña, the recent Australian floods or during bushfire season.
You can regularly catch our experts on TV shows such as Sunrise and 7News dishing out the latest home insurance savings tips.
To prevent water damage, it's worth making sure your gutters don't become blocked by leaves and other debris this autumn. Home insurance typically won't cover you for damage related to something like this. This is because it's considered general maintenance – that is, something you ought to be doing yourself.
Just having an awareness of what your insurance cover amount is and what your policy covers you for will make a difference. If you just haven't reviewed it for a number of years, it may be time to do that.
Trying to navigate a product disclosure statement can get overwhelming quickly. So I understand why people get confused about what's included in their policies. When I'm doing research, I just Ctrl+F a keyword or phrase and it saves me a lot of time and frustration.
One thing I've learned is that every insurer prices its risk in really different ways. Something as simple as the policyholder having a birthday can change the risk profile of the policy and change the premium. I compared options in 2022 when my home insurance premium went up by 33%, and I saved over $1,400! It really pays to shop around.
One of the most common accidents is when people have their smartphones accidentally damaged. The great news is most content insurance can cover your phone in and outside of your home. To ensure your phone is properly covered, have it specified on your policy.
I pay for home insurance annually, whenever I can afford to. Insurers often charge more if you pay for your policy once per month. I'm a firm believer that staying loyal to an insurer never pays off with home insurance. I'd encourage consumers to compare at least 4 or 5 different policies when your renewal date creeps closer.
Budget Direct is our 2023 value winner in home insurance.
On average, it's cheaper than most insurers and it covers most of the essentials such as fires, storms and theft. You can take out extra cover for things like floods and accidental damage.
QBE is our green insurer of the year for the fourth consecutive year. It's on track to be net-zero by 2030, a portion of your premiums go towards environmental causes and it can pay for some swanky environmental upgrades if your home is damaged. Plus, it's one of the most comprehensive home insurance policies you can get in Australia.
No? Maybe our customer satisfaction awards can help. We teamed up with research firm Dynata and asked hundreds of Australians for their opinion about their home insurance. Our 2022 winners are:
Global warming is to blame for a lot. It's also a major reason home insurance costs are rising. You don't need to just accept the price increase though. When your renewal comes up, shop around. You'll likely find somewhere cheaper.
Take advantage of sign-up discounts
Home insurers like to offer sign-up discounts to get you on board. Some can genuinely save you a lot of money, like 30% off your first year. If you want to continue saving though, keep switching every 12 months because insurers often increase existing customers' prices significantly.
Install home security
Insurers like safe homes, so make yours like Fort Knox (internal alarms, external sirens or external strobe lights will suffice) and some will charge you less.
Increase your excess
This is a specified amount you need to pay whenever you make a claim. All home insurance policies have them. Most will let you increase your excess in return for cheaper premiums. There's a downside though – making a smaller-value claim won't be worth it.
"When my husband and I turned 60 and became semi-retired we wanted to put a stop to unnecessary purchases/bills so we could spend time enjoying our retirement. When we received our insurance renewal (from a company we'd been with for over 5 years), I was blown away to learn not only were they increasing my premium by 60%, but when I compared their basic cover against Honey Insurance's cover (with added benefits) I was saving over $700 a year!"
Donna and Kevin Field
NSW-based homeowners
Home insurance deals
Remember the deals and sign-up offers we mentioned? We put together a list of them below to help you save:
Get a home insurance quote for $5 Kogan.com credit
Get a quote before 11:59am AEST 5 February and you’ll receive a $5 credit to spend at Kogan.com. For purchases over $100 (excluding shipping), T&Cs apply.
Earn up to 40,000 Qantas Points with Qantas Home Insurance
Earn up to 40K Qantas Points for joining by 29 January. Plus save 30% on your 1st year’s premium for purchasing a combined home and contents policy online. T&Cs apply.
Your lender will usually require you to have home and contents insurance when you buy a home. Unlike car insurance though, it's not usually a legal requirement. However, it is the biggest asset that you own, so it's incredibly risky to go without it.
We gathered over 200 quotes from 16 different insurers and found that the average cost of home insurance in Australia is $160 a month. However, this is going to vary based on your own living situation.
The cost of home insurance can depend on different factors including the following:
The value of your home and belongings. The more expensive, the higher your premiums are likely to be to cover the costs.
The area that you live in. Is your home in a bushfire-prone area or one where burglary is common? The higher the risk of damage or loss, the more expensive your home insurance will be.
There are a few different ways. You could choose a higher excess. Paying for your premium annually, rather than monthly, you lower the cost of your policy (in some cases).
Dropping your cover level could also reduce your upfront premium cost, but it can lead to underinsurance.
The best home insurance policy is the one that suits your specific needs. To help you decide, our home insurance experts analysed over 30 different benefits from insurers we work with and selected 5 different policies based on popularity, features and price. You can find out more on our best home insurance guide.
No, you don't need building insurance since you don't own the property – in most cases, your strata insurance will cover you. However, it may be worth getting renters insurance. This can cover you for damage to your own possessions.
You shouldn't need building insurance if you live in an apartment because the strata fees you pay will cover you. However, you may still want to get contents insurance to cover damage to your items.
During the quote process, most home insurers will ask you how much you want to insure your building for. This is often called the sum insured. To do this, you will need to estimate how much it would cost to rebuild your property if it was destroyed. The easiest way to do this is to use a building and contents calculator or use Honey Insurance which can calculate this figure for you.
Sum insured is when you choose the maximum amount of cover you want for your home. For example, if you think your home will cost $1,500,000 to rebuild from scratch, this is the sum insured you'd select. On the other hand, total replacement insurance covers the market value of rebuilding your home.
Sum insured is riskier (and usually cheaper) because there's a chance you won't value the home properly. For example, if your sum insured is $1,500,000 but your home ends up costing $1,800,000 to rebuild, you'll have to pay the $300,000 yourself. Find out more about total replacement cover in our full guide.
Most home insurers Finder works with automatically cover flood damage. However, it's an optional add-on with some brands such as Budget Direct and Qantas.
According to the 2023 Finder Customer Satisfaction Awards, Youi is the highest rated home insurer. Youi came in first place overall for customer satisfaction, scoring 4.39/5. It scored highly in all surveyed states for customer service, features and benefits, ease of application and value for money. On average 94% of Australians surveyed nationally said they would recommend Youi to a friend. See the methodology for scoring.
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To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Angus Kidman as part of our fact-checking process.
Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 646 Finder guides across topics including:
What you need to know about finding the best home insurance for you. Compare policies and learn what questions to ask when researching insurance policies.
Need insurance that will cover our home year round, we live in the home 6 months a year and overseas 6 months a year, during which time we will Air BNB which we also need to be covered for. Would prefer complete replacement cover. Getting so many varying quotes and getting a bit lost!
Finder
ZubairApril 26, 2017Finder
Hi ET,
Thank you for your question.
I’m sorry to hear about the difficulty you’re having. While we can’t provide specific recommendations, I advise that you check your options listed on this page.
Aside from that, you may find ShareCover page helpful. They could cover your home. Please get in touch with them so you can get more details.
All the best,
Zubair
MickApril 3, 2017
Who supplies Insurance to new incomplete dwellings, without a final certificate being lived in prior to completion.
Finder
ZubairApril 4, 2017Finder
Hi Mick,
Thank you for your question.
finder.com.au is a comparison and information service and we are not permitted to provide our users with personalised financial advice or product recommendations.
You will need to contact home insurers directly about this matter.
All the best,
Zubair
SarahFebruary 11, 2017
If your part of a body corporate, why is it so hard to get home and contents insurance?
Finder
ZubairFebruary 14, 2017Finder
Hi Sarah,
I’m sorry to hear about the problem you’re having. Thanks for getting in touch.
Regarding your question, I’m afraid I can’t tell you the answer as we are not an insurer. However, one primary reason could be is that there’s a lot of risks involved in insuring the property. Another reason is there might be some requirements that you have not met.
The best thing you can do is get in touch with your chosen insurer. If they can’t provide cover, then you might ask well them directly why. You should then get a more specific answer.
In the meantime, you may want to read our guide about business strata insurance. Aside from learning more about the insurance type you’re looking for, there’s a form on that page you can fill out. Once you submit that form, someone should get in touch with you and discuss your options.
While looking for insurers, please make sure you read the terms and conditions of the policy to learn more and know if it is the right policy for you or not.
I hope this helps. Should you have further questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out again.
Have a wonderful day!
All the best,
Zubair
JackFebruary 9, 2017
I have cracks inside my home high in the walls near where the walls meet the roof, also cracks on corners,and some in the cyprock ceiling, and
walls are brick and render walls, building inspector told me it was from the plats the roof sits on from high winds shifting it, been insured for over 30 years with the some insurer, they have rejected to pay my claim, what should I do?
Finder
RichardFebruary 9, 2017Finder
Hi Jack,
Thanks for getting in touch. If you feel that you’ve been unfairly assessed, you can go through your insurers internal dispute resolution process. If after that you’re still unsatisfied, you can contact the ombudsman.
Cheers,
Richard
BruceNovember 19, 2016
Why do you only show Hollard underwritten policies, plus you, under house and contents?
Do you have a financial connection to Hollard?
Finder
RichardNovember 21, 2016Finder
HI Bruce,
Thanks for your question. While Hollard is the underwriter of Woolworths insurance products, finder.com.au does not have a financial connection with Hollard. Out of our panel of home insurers, only Woolworths is underwritten by Hollard.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard
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Important information about this website
Finder makes money from featured partners, but editorial opinions are our own.
Finder is one of Australia's leading comparison websites. We are committed to our readers and stand by our editorial principles.
We try to take an open and transparent approach and provide a broad-based comparison service. However, you should be aware that while we are an independently owned service, our comparison service does not include all providers or all products available in the market.
Some product issuers may provide products or offer services through multiple brands, associated companies or different labeling arrangements. This can make it difficult for consumers to compare alternatives or identify the companies behind the products. However, we aim to provide information to enable consumers to understand these issues.
We make money by featuring products on our site. Compensation received from the providers featured on our site can influence which products we write about as well as where and how products appear on our page, but the order or placement of these products does not influence our assessment or opinions of them, nor is it an endorsement or recommendation for them.
Products marked as 'Top Pick', 'Promoted' or 'Advertisement' are prominently displayed either as a result of a commercial advertising arrangement or to highlight a particular product, provider or feature. Finder may receive remuneration from the Provider if you click on the related link, purchase or enquire about the product. Finder's decision to show a 'promoted' product is neither a recommendation that the product is appropriate for you nor an indication that the product is the best in its category. We encourage you to use the tools and information we provide to compare your options.
Where our site links to particular products or displays 'Go to site' buttons, we may receive a commission, referral fee or payment when you click on those buttons or apply for a product.
When products are grouped in a table or list, the order in which they are initially sorted may be influenced by a range of factors including price, fees and discounts; commercial partnerships; product features; and brand popularity. We provide tools so you can sort and filter these lists to highlight features that matter to you.
Please read our website terms of use and privacy policy for more information about our services and our approach to privacy.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching home insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
Need insurance that will cover our home year round, we live in the home 6 months a year and overseas 6 months a year, during which time we will Air BNB which we also need to be covered for. Would prefer complete replacement cover. Getting so many varying quotes and getting a bit lost!
Hi ET,
Thank you for your question.
I’m sorry to hear about the difficulty you’re having. While we can’t provide specific recommendations, I advise that you check your options listed on this page.
Aside from that, you may find ShareCover page helpful. They could cover your home. Please get in touch with them so you can get more details.
All the best,
Zubair
Who supplies Insurance to new incomplete dwellings, without a final certificate being lived in prior to completion.
Hi Mick,
Thank you for your question.
finder.com.au is a comparison and information service and we are not permitted to provide our users with personalised financial advice or product recommendations.
You will need to contact home insurers directly about this matter.
All the best,
Zubair
If your part of a body corporate, why is it so hard to get home and contents insurance?
Hi Sarah,
I’m sorry to hear about the problem you’re having. Thanks for getting in touch.
Regarding your question, I’m afraid I can’t tell you the answer as we are not an insurer. However, one primary reason could be is that there’s a lot of risks involved in insuring the property. Another reason is there might be some requirements that you have not met.
The best thing you can do is get in touch with your chosen insurer. If they can’t provide cover, then you might ask well them directly why. You should then get a more specific answer.
In the meantime, you may want to read our guide about business strata insurance. Aside from learning more about the insurance type you’re looking for, there’s a form on that page you can fill out. Once you submit that form, someone should get in touch with you and discuss your options.
While looking for insurers, please make sure you read the terms and conditions of the policy to learn more and know if it is the right policy for you or not.
I hope this helps. Should you have further questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out again.
Have a wonderful day!
All the best,
Zubair
I have cracks inside my home high in the walls near where the walls meet the roof, also cracks on corners,and some in the cyprock ceiling, and
walls are brick and render walls, building inspector told me it was from the plats the roof sits on from high winds shifting it, been insured for over 30 years with the some insurer, they have rejected to pay my claim, what should I do?
Hi Jack,
Thanks for getting in touch. If you feel that you’ve been unfairly assessed, you can go through your insurers internal dispute resolution process. If after that you’re still unsatisfied, you can contact the ombudsman.
Cheers,
Richard
Why do you only show Hollard underwritten policies, plus you, under house and contents?
Do you have a financial connection to Hollard?
HI Bruce,
Thanks for your question. While Hollard is the underwriter of Woolworths insurance products, finder.com.au does not have a financial connection with Hollard. Out of our panel of home insurers, only Woolworths is underwritten by Hollard.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard